Sento
A sentō ( Japanese 銭 湯 ) is a traditional Japanese bathhouse in urban residential areas. The bathing culture plays an important role in everyday Japanese life. Due to fire protection regulations, there were no private bathrooms in the houses for a long time, as the bathing water had to be heated with an open fire. The fire protection law promoted the spread of the Sentos in Japan. Since the second half of the 20th century, the number of Sentō visitors has steadily declined as more and more apartments have bathrooms. As a meeting point, Sentōs still have a social function today.
In the cities, the public bathhouses are relatively easy to recognize by their high chimneys, as they are still mostly heated with wood. The entrance is often designed similar to a temple . Modern houses have lockers in the changing rooms, in older houses the clothes are deposited in open baskets. The modern Sentos have separate bathrooms for women and men. This strict gender segregation was only introduced in the 19th century. A sliding door between the changing room and bathing area ensures that the heat does not escape. An exception are the Sentōs in the Okinawa region , where the climate is relatively hot.
The bathroom is traditionally clad with wood. On a side wall there is usually a painted natural landscape (e.g. with a mountain, often Mount Fuji ). This is an analogy to the onsen baths , which offer uninterrupted views of the landscape. Thorough cleaning precedes the actual bath. Usually, there are small stools in front of a row of taps with cold and warm water. It is expected that every bathing guest here first soaps and rinses off thoroughly before going into the pool. As a rule there are two or three pools with different temperatures. In any case, a Japanese bath is relatively hot. The water temperature is at least 40 degrees Celsius.
Sento etiquette
There are certain rules for visiting a Sento, which must also be observed by foreign bathers. Every visitor brings a towel as well as soap and shampoo for bathing. However, this basic equipment can also be purchased at reception. Many Japanese devote themselves extensively to body care from head to toe in the Sentō, here they brush their teeth, shave, etc. Some also have their own wash bowl with them.
As soon as you have entered the bathhouse, you take off your shoes - as in Japanese private apartments - and put them in a locker. Bathing is generally naked, swimwear is not permitted. After undressing, the body cleanses thoroughly, which the Japanese attach great importance to so that the bath water is not contaminated. The bathroom itself is not used for cleaning, but for relaxation.
Extreme care is also taken not to let any soap foam get into the basin; Violations have the consequence that the Sentō operator has to clean and refill the pool, and the person responsible for this must expect to be expelled from the bathhouse. Towels shouldn't be immersed in the bath water either, even if some locals do.
Access restrictions
Most sentōs have signs indicating that people with tattoos are not allowed in. Hygienic reasons are officially given for this. The real reason, however, is to keep away the members of the Japanese mafia called Yakuza , who are often extensively tattooed. Smaller tattoos, such as those owned by many Europeans, are generally tolerated. However, foreigners with full body tattoos could be turned away with reference to the ban.
Some bathhouses generally deny entry to foreign bathers, recognizable by a sign Japanese only ( only for Japanese people ), although this discrimination does not comply with Japanese law. Such bans are z. B. often pronounced on Hokkaidō or near the military bases of the USA such as in Yokosuka on the grounds that there were repeated problems with drunk Russian or American sailors in the baths. Such access restrictions are the exception in Sentōs.
history
The first bathhouses in Japan were built in the so-called Nara period (710–784) in Buddhist monasteries and were initially reserved for monks before they were opened to the sick and poor during the Kamakura period . As a rule, they were steam baths . The first public bath house in Japan is mentioned in 1266. In Tokyo (then Edo ) the first sento in 1591. The arose early baths were steam and sweat baths, called Iwaburo ( 岩風呂 , stone baths) or Kamaburo ( 釜風呂 , oven baths). They were natural or artificial rock caves or stone vaults. In the Iwaburo along the coast, the rock was heated by burning wood. Then sea water was poured over the rocks, creating steam.
The entrance to these “bath houses” was very small so that the steam would not escape. There were no windows, so it was very dark inside and users kept clearing their throats or coughing to signal new entrants which seats were already occupied. The darkness could also be used for sexual contact , because there was no separation of the sexes, and so these baths fell into disrepute. They were finally abolished in 1870 for hygienic and moral reasons.
At the beginning of the so-called Edo period (1603–1867) there were two different types of baths. In Edo, hot water baths ( 湯 屋 yuya ) were common, while in Ōsaka there were steam baths ( 蒸 し 風 呂 mushiburo ). At that time, men and women shared a bath. The male visitors, especially the samurai , loved bathhouses that employed “bath girls” ( 女 yuna ) who scrubbed the guests' backs, washed their hair, etc. Some apparently also offered love services for a fee. Even today there are still brothels in which women take their customers or bathe with them, called Soapland . In 1841, the employment of Yunas was generally prohibited, as was bathing of both sexes together. However, the separation of the sexes was often disregarded by the operators of the bathhouses or the areas for men and women were only symbolically separated by a leash. This resulted in renewed official bans. Today men and women bathe in separate rooms in almost all Sentō. There are now also single tubs.
In the Meiji period (1867-1912) the new Sentos were built considerably larger. Since most bathhouses now had water basins instead of steam baths, the buildings now also have windows and sliding doors instead of a small entrance hatch. However, there was no running water for body cleansing before. Every bather received their ration of water after changing their clothes. On September 1, 1923, the great Kantō earthquake destroyed large parts of Tokyo and with it most of the bathhouses. The interior of the new Sentos was no longer clad with wood, but tiled, and taps in the washing area were also common.
Since many Japanese cities were bombed and partially or completely destroyed during the Second World War , most Japanese no longer had private bathing facilities. The houses that were rebuilt in a short time after the war often had no bathrooms either. As a result, the newly established Sentos experienced a strong boom. By 1970 demand had peaked. After that, more and more private baths were set up, and the number of visitors to public baths steadily decreased. In the meantime, many operators are expanding their traditional bathing offer and also offer wellness applications, massages , fango and fitness training , as well as medical applications. Some Sentos are extensive complexes with hotels, restaurants and karaoke bars.
literature
- Constance (Connie) Brown , Paul Chesley (Photos): Japan: A People Under Steam. In: Geo-Magazin. Hamburg 1980, 1, pp. 84-98. Informative experience report ("In Beppu hot water emerges from the earth in over 3000 places.") ISSN 0342-8311
